Rhubarb, rhubarb, rhubarb.....................................

No, I am not just trying to fill in the gaps with Monty Python style mutterings! I am actually talking about those wonderfully dark pink stalks that make the best crumble or fool or are a perfect surprise when you get to the bottom of your creme brulee!

I have always loved rhubarb but unfortunately it has a short season, is always sold in such small bunches, and I have always heard it is not so easy to grow.

Well, Jim and I went away over the weekend and I was delighted to see, as we were driving up the Rift Valley escarpment, to see several road side stalls full of rhubarb. The drive up the escarpment is quite spectacular especially if you are on the bottom road right on the cliff edge (although I must admit as a passenger I often have my eyes closed because of all the mad truck drivers!). Not being in any hurry we stopped for a road side picnic with a view.

 

 

I have always found Toyota bonnets make perfect picnic tables!

 

It doesnot matter where you are the trinket sellers will always find you! I fed these 2 which stunned them for long enough for us to make an escape.

 

On the way back we stopped to stock up. I will admit I went a bit overboard buying 6 bunches that I could hardly get my arm around! As I was negotiating the price we looked down at several plastic bags of wet soil only to realise that they were the precious 'crowns' and they were for sale. Of course the whole lot went into the back of the truck and we spent the rest of the journey home discussing where they would be planted.
Most unusually, we did get on with the job as soon as we arrived home - me in the kitchen and Jim in the garden.

I had apple and rhubarb jam in mind when purchasing but finally decided on freezing half and bottling the rest.
I consulted several books before starting and found one that suggested cooking the rhubarb using Verjuice! Well, as you can see from the photos it helped keep the amazing pink colour. I have always though it such a disappointment that the pink fades to a greeny pink-brown.

My favourite pot with 3 bunches of rhubarb chopped into 2-3inch pieces, the remains of my precious Maggie Beer verjuice (about 400mls) and a hefty sprinkle of caster sugar when on a low flame until the stalk were soft but not sloppy.  

Sterilising jars the lazy way - boil the kettle and pour over the lids and fill the jars. Leave for about 5 minutes. The jars will be hot so use tongs to lift and empty the water out.

Fill the jars right to the top and seal with the hot lids.

A trick I learned from a Maggie Beer video. As soon as they are sealed tip the jars upside down and leave until cool. Especially if you are using recycled jars this action (for some reason I still have not worked out but I am sure my physics mad cousin will tell me) 'sucks in' the middle of the lid and forms a seal. Essential if you want to store your produce for several months (I first tried it with my bread and butter cucumbers back in March and they where perfect when opened a few weeks ago)

Pudding sized bags ready for the freezer

Not enough for a full jar so we tested it with plain yoghurt - YUM!

Not a great photo but as I was preparing the stalks I found 2 with a bud coming out the side. We have popped them into plastic pots and added them to our germination nursery onthe kitchen window sill to see what will happen.

 

We now have our pantry supplies and 4 crowns in the garden. After more reading, it turns out they are quite hardy plants as long as they get manure and water regularly. They last for about 4 years and then can be pulled up and divided as you would spring bulbs. All being well, we have rhubarb for life. Of which my younger brother will be very jealous - it is his really most favourite thing!!

 

Happy Eating!